McConnell: Immigration bill flawed

The Senate’s top Republican said Tuesday that the Gang of Eight immigration bill contains “serious flaws” — marking his toughest words yet on the wide-reaching legislation that is set to officially begin debate on Tuesday.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called for significant changes to the bill in the areas of border security, taxes, and government benefits. Those changes mirror concerns from fellow Republicans who have raised similar issues with the bill in recent days.

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“At the risk of stating the obvious, the bill has serious flaws,” McConnell said Tuesday. “I’ll vote to debate it and for the opportunity to amend it, but in the days ahead, there will need to be major changes to this bill if it’s going to become law.”

For instance, McConnell said he wasn’t satisfied with just the Department of Homeland Security certifying that the U.S.-Mexico border was secure – a key requirement in the 13-year pathway to citizenship for current undocumented immigrants.

The Senate is set to hold two procedural votes on moving to floor debate this afternoon and both are likely to pass. Republicans, including McConnell, are not interested in blocking debate on the bill. But McConnell has not formally worked out a deal with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to govern the slew of amendments that are expected to be considered to the bill, which will likely see a vote before July 4.

McConnell also said concerns about the bill’s cost were a “fair critique.” The Congressional Budget Office has not yet released an official score for the bill, but its potential price tag has been a frequent argument used by opponents against the Gang plan.

Those comments Tuesday morning were the most extensive yet from McConnell, who has stayed relatively quiet on the reform efforts moving through his chamber. Until now, the most significant remarks he had made were that he would vote in favor of allowing debate to proceed on the legislation.

“I haven’t met anybody who thinks the current immigration system is working,” McConnell said. “As an elected leader in my party, it is my view that at least we need to try to improve the situation that – as far as I can tell – very few people believe is working well.”